1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image-forming apparatus and a method of manufacture therefor More particularly, the invention relates to the structure of the anode terminal unit of a flat panel electron image-forming apparatus.
2. Related Background Art
Conventionally, the CRT has been used widely as the image-forming apparatus that displays images by the utilization of electron beams. Meanwhile, the use of the flat panel display, which adopts liquid crystal in place of the CRT, has been promoted in recent years. However, since the flat panel display is not self-emissive, a problem is encountered that a display of the kind should be provided with a back light or the like. Therefore, it has been long sought to develop a display of the kind, but one which is of the self-emissive type.
In recent years, merchandizing of a plasma display as a self-emissive display has begun. The principle of the emission thereof is different from that of the conventional CRT. The plasma display is still inferior to the CRT with respect to the image contrast and coloring, among some other aspects. With anticipation that a flat panel image-forming apparatus should provide emission as good in quality as the CRT if a plurality of electron emission devices are arranged, various researches and developments have been carried out. For example, in the specification of Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 4-163833, there has been disclosed a flat panel electron emission image-forming apparatus which contains a linearly thermionic cathode and a complicated electrode structure in a vacuum container.
In general, it has been known that a method for forming a vacuum container of the kind comprises a step of sealing the glass rear plate having an electron source formed for it, and the glass face plate having an image-forming member formed for it airtightly through a frame by use of a sealing material or comprises a step of sealing both the rear and face plates airtightly only by use of a sealing material if the panel interval is narrower between them.
Here, as the sealing material, low-fusion point glass, and a process is applied so that the temperature is raised to 400xc2x0 C. in order to soften this material. In this process, then, the face and rear plates, the atmosphere supporting spacer which is needed for the formation of the vacuum panel, the anode terminal which will be described later, and various other structural members are also exposed to such high temperature. The interior of the sealing panel thus produced through these processes is evacuated in the evacuation process for the vacuum container. Then, the external driving circuit, and the leading out wiring formed on the rear plate side are electrically connected. After this process, the panel is incorporated in the housing to complete the image-forming apparatus.
With the image-forming apparatus thus formed that uses electron beams, electrons are emitted to the desired positions by the provision of image signals from the external signal processing circuit to the rear plate leading out wiring in a state where a voltage of several to several tens of kV approximately is applied in order to accelerate electrons between two sheets of glass (the rear plate having the electron source formed for it, and the face plate having the image-forming member formed for it). Subsequently, by means of the potential difference between the two sheets of glass, electrons are accelerated to enable the image forming member of the face plate to emit light, which is obtained as images.
An image-forming apparatus of the kind is formed to be provided with the anode terminal that supplies a high voltage to the image-forming member. For example, the structure of the anode terminal, which is disclosed in the specification of Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 5-114372, is arranged so that the high voltage from the high voltage generating source of the image-forming apparatus is supplied from the rear plate side to the image-forming member of the face plate through the high voltage cable, the lead-in terminal airtightly sealed on the, rear plate side of the vacuum container, the elastic member that connects the lead-in terminal and the image-forming member, among some others.
However, the aforesaid anode structure is arranged to connect the airtight lead-in terminal from the back side of the rear plate. As a result, when assembling the vacuum container, the sealing mechanism that makes the sealing from the back side of the rear plate should be installed on the back side of the manufacturing apparatus, hence making the costs of the manufacturing apparatus higher inevitably.
With a view to solving the problems discussed above, the present invention is designed. It is an object of the invention to provide an image-forming apparatus having a new anode terminal structure whereby to implement the reduction of the manufacturing costs, and also, to provide a manufacturing method thereof.
In order to achieve this object, the image-forming apparatus of the present invention forms images by the irradiation of electrons from the electron supply source formed on one plate to the image-forming member formed on the other plate in the vacuum container structured between a pair of facing plates. For this image-forming apparatus, an airtight lead-in terminal is arranged to be connected with the image-forming member on the other plate through a terminal lead-in hole arranged for one plate, and the airtight lead-in terminal is held and fixed so as not to be protruded from the outer surface of one plate.
Also, the method of the present invention for manufacturing an image-forming apparatus, which forms images by the irradiation of electrons from the electron supply source formed on one plate to the image-forming member formed on the other plate in the vacuum container structure between a pair of facing plates, comprises the step of adjusting a gap between a pair of plates to each other by use of a connecting member arranged for the abutting portion between an airtight lead-in terminal and an image-forming member when the airtight lead-in terminal is fixed to a terminal lead-in hole arranged for one plate by adhesive sealing means through a terminal supporting member.
Also, the method of the present invention for manufacturing an image-forming apparatus, which forms images by the irradiation of electrons from the electron supply source formed on one plate to the image-forming member formed on the other plate in the vacuum container structured between a pair of facing plates, comprises the step of adjusting a gap between a pair of plates to each other by use of adhesive sealing means when an airtight lead-in terminal is fixed to the image-forming member by means of a connecting member, and the airtight lead-in terminal is fixed by the adhesive sealing means to a terminal lead-in hole through a terminal supporting member.